Daisy Edgar-Jones and Caitríona Balfe led the glamour on the red carpet as Sense and Sensibility arrived in Dublin for its Irish premiere at The Stella Cinema.
The actresses were among the stars celebrating the new adaptation of Jane Austen’s much-loved classic, with plenty of excitement surrounding this fresh take on the story of the Dashwood sisters.
And, naturally, we couldn’t let them walk the carpet without asking a few very important questions about their characters.
Daisy Edgar-Jones on Elinor Dashwood and modern dating
Daisy Edgar-Jones takes on the role of Elinor Dashwood, the eldest of the Dashwood sisters, whose ability to keep her emotions firmly under control is put to the test throughout the story.
So, with modern dating being what it is, we had to ask: Elinor is the queen of keeping her feelings to herself — how do you think she would cope with modern dating?
“Oh my goodness, much the same, I think!” Daisy laughed.
“You’re right, that’s the kind of challenge of playing Elinor. So much is happening with her between the lines, and I think I really relate to her in that way.”
Daisy went on to explain why Elinor’s quieter nature is something she connects with.
“I love people and characters that are able to say, ‘I love him,’ but I also really relate to that quiet person.”
She added, with a laugh, that it is “definitely something I understand”.
And perhaps that is part of what makes Elinor such an interesting character to bring into a new adaptation. While the setting may be firmly rooted in Austen’s world, the struggle of having feelings you’re not quite ready to say out loud still feels very familiar.
Caitríona Balfe on Dashwood drama
Caitríona Balfe stars as Mrs Dashwood and was equally up for getting involved in some Dashwood family drama.
We asked her the all-important question: who is the biggest drama queen in the film?
Her answer was not one of the Dashwood sisters.
“Queen Mab,” Caitríona replied, referring to the horse.
It was delivered with plenty of humour and proved to be one of our favourite answers of the evening.
But we weren’t finished there.
If the Dashwood family had a WhatsApp group, we wanted to know who Caitríona thought would be removed for being too dramatic.
Her answer? Fiona Shaw.
Caitríona joked that Fiona would be the first to be removed from the family WhatsApp group for being “very dramatic” — all very much in the spirit of the fun evening.
It does make you wonder what the Dashwood family WhatsApp group would actually look like. We imagine it would be one very busy chat.
A fresh take on a classic
Directed by Georgia Oakley, the new Sense and Sensibility brings a fresh perspective to Austen’s beloved story, with the relationship between the Dashwood sisters placed firmly at its heart.
Daisy Edgar-Jones stars as Elinor, alongside Esmé Creed-Miles as Marianne, Caitríona Balfe as Mrs Dashwood, George MacKay, Frank Dillane, Herbert Nordrum, Bodhi Rae Breathnach and Fiona Shaw.
While romance remains at the centre of the story, this new adaptation also explores sisterhood, family and the different ways people navigate love, expectations and their own emotions.
And judging by the atmosphere at The Stella Cinema, there was plenty of excitement as the cast and guests gathered to celebrate the film’s arrival in Ireland.
For us, the highlight was getting to put some very 2026 questions to two very Austen-era characters — and discovering that, even in the world of Sense and Sensibility, there is always room for a little WhatsApp drama.
Sense and Sensibility is in Irish cinemas from 25 September 2026.
You can watch the trailer here –
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